Tears, temper on trail

CHICAGO TRIBUNE

Hillary Clinton's eyes welled up and her voice broke Monday as she discussed the difficult campaign. Hers was the latest in a long line of emotional displays in presidential races, some of which helped candidates, and some of which hurt.

Rival emoter

Another candidate in the '08 race, Mitt Romney, wore his heart on his sleeve twice last month. He choked up on NBC's "Meet the Press" while talking about his religion, and tears welled in his eyes as he spoke about watching the casket of a soldier killed in Iraq. "I have emotion just like anyone else," he told reporters. "I'm not ashamed of that at all."

Snowflakes

Edmund Muskie (right), angered over a New Hampshire newspaper's criticism of his wife in 1972, stood in the snow outside the paper's offices and publicly denounced the editor. Witnesses said Muskie shed tears; he insisted they were only snowflakes hitting his face. In the public mind-set of the time, tears were a sign of weakness, and the episode helped wreck Muskie's chances.

Hot mike

When a moderator tried to cut off Ronald Reagan during a campaign forum in New Hampshire in 1980, the Gipper showed his pique. "I'm paying for this microphone!" he declared, helping establish his reputation as a forceful leader.

Flip side

In a 1988 debate, Michael Dukakis was criticized for not showing emotion. Asked whether he would support the death penalty if his wife, Kitty, were raped and murdered, Dukakis responded with a passionless policy statement.

Bowing out

Patricia Schroeder (left) wept in 1987 when she announced her decision not to run for president. She told The Associated Press last month that she's still catching flak about it, mostly from women. "It's like I ruined their lives, 20 years ago, with three seconds of catching my breath," she said.

The shriek

In 2004, Howard Dean tried to give a rousing speech as his campaign moved from Iowa to New Hampshire, but he got too excited. Transcripts of the speech say Dean shouted "Yes!" But USA Today said it was more like "Yeeeeeeeearrrrrrhhhhh!" Some called it the " I have a scream" speech.

The last line

Adlai Stevenson, after losing in 1952, recalled how fellow Illinoisan Abraham Lincoln accepted defeat: "He said that he was too old to cry, but it hurts too much to laugh."